Sports Roundup

Published 5:30 am, Thursday, September 23, 2004

Lamar

Football
— The young Redskins notched their first victory last week, blanking Westbury 54-0. Now, they'll tackle District 21-5A play, meeting Austin at 7 p.m. Thursday at Delmar Stadium in the league opener.

"We're feeling a lot better now that we have three games under our belt," said Lamar coach Tom Nolen. "The kids are starting to mature as a team. Austin's 0-3, but it's a district game, so we'll need to be prepared."

Lamar's patience and perseverance was rewarded against Westbury. After mistakes cost them in losses to Yates (19-16) and El Campo (28-0), everything came together against the Rebels.

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The Redskins' quarterback tandem of Demetrius Woods and J.J.McDermott settled down and played their finest game of the season.

Woods was a perfect 4-for-4 passing for 186 yards with touchdowns of 75, 79 and 27 yards to Brandon LaFell. McDermott didn't do badly, either; he hit 3 of 4 attempts for 91 yards, including a 67-yard TD strike to Quincy Driver.

"Turnovers plagued us the first two weeks, but our quarterbacks didn't make those same errors (against Westbury)," Nolen said. "That was the difference."

LaFell finished with three catches for 181 yards, while Driver grabbed two receptions for 72 yards.

The Redskins didn't ignore the run completely as Eric Eiland ran nine times for 75 yards and a 45-yard touchdown.

Lamar accrued a season-best 367 yards in total offense,

The defense, led by the Redskins' front seven and cornerback Dale Lloyd, also manhandled Westbury, allowing 253 yards and scoring three times. In addition to a safety, Driver had a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown, and Michael James added a 30-yard fumble return for another score.

"We let our first game get away from us, and we just didn't play well at all against El Campo," Nolen said. "But I we executed a lot better against Westbury, especially the defense."

The Redskins will now turn their attention to Austin (0-3). The Mustangs fell to Galena Park 55-14 last week. James Day led Austin in defeat, rushing for close to 100 yards and two touchdowns.

"The big thing with Austin is slowing down their power running game," Nolen said. "That's what we'll try to do."

Cross country — Lamar's girls won the Bo Humphrey Invitational hosted by Jones last weekend. The Redskins had 39 points, beating Alief Taylor with 56 and Austin with 66.

Amy Fowler and Asaia Carter led the Redskins by finishing the two-mile race in second (14:23) and third (14:29), respectively. Ashley Gray was next for Lamar in sixth place (15:00), followed by Katy Gower in ninth (15:30).

Lamar's boys didn't make the top three in the boys division but placed two medalists. Grant Wiccum was fifth in the three-mile race (17:49), while Richard Hood came in 11th (18:36).

The Redskins (15-5) took a perfect 5-0 league mark into its showdown with Bellaire earlier this week. Last week, Lamar beat Madison 25-18, 25-14, 25-19 and Milby 25-18, 25-13, 25-7. Katelyn Blackwood had nine kills against the Marlins, while Cristina Correa had 10 against the Buffaloes.

Westbury

Volleyball
— Some people might be shocked to find Westbury atop the District 22-4A standings, but not coach
Barbara Wicks
.

"I felt all along we'd be a much better team," Wicks said. "The girls worked hard all summer. We held volleyball camps at Westbury, and some of the kids played in the Aldine ISD league. They came out ready to play."

With a pair of victories last week, Westbury ran its league mark to 4-0, just ahead of Waltrip at 3-0. Those teams meet at 7:45 p.m. Sept. 29 at Delmar Sports Complex, with the District 22-4A lead on the line.

"If we take care of business, we could take over first place," Wicks said. "But Waltrip's not going to be easy. They've got a great team."

But so do the Rebels (8-4), who dominated Sterling 25-23, 25-23, 25-21 and Wheatley 25-21, 25-19, 25-7 last week.

Lisa Ohanaja has been a force for Westbury at middle blocker. Ohanaja racked up nine kills in both matches. She also had five blocks against Wheatley and three against Sterling.

"Lisa didn't play volleyball last year, but she's come on strong," Wicks said. "She's been the difference."

Tafara Cameron and Brittney Edwards have been dominant at outside hitter, while Sandra Iwunze has performed well at right side hitter. Cameron had nine kills against Sterling and Iwunze nine against Wheatley.

But coach Ap Clarke said the Cardinals did it without four key starters.

Middle blocker Ashlee Freeman missed both matches while visiting her grandmother. Outside hitter Kendall Burns was sidelined with an ankle injury, while defensive specialist Betsy Graham sat out with pink eye. Finally, right side hitter Madison Griffin is out for the season with a dislocated ankle.

"It was a rough week," Clarke admitted. "Fortunately, we had some kids off the bench who stepped up."

McKenzie Moore rose to the occasion at outside hitter, while Alexis Lambright filled in for Griffin at right side hitter.

While the Cardinals survived injuries and other problems, they'll need to get well for two significant matches. Bellaire met Lamar in a first-place battle earlier this week. The Cardinals also have Austin at 5:15 p.m. Friday at Butler Sports Complex.

"The timing (of the injuries) is bad, but somehow we'll have to get through it," Clarke said.

Football — The Cardinals (2-1) will open District 21-5A play against Milby at 7 p.m. Saturday at Barnett Stadium.

Bellaire coach Marshall Law said the Buffaloes (2-1), who lost to Davis 39-14 last week, are one of the area's most-improved teams.

"Davis has some outstanding skill people, so it wasn't a bad loss," Law said. "Milby has come a long way. Coach (Mike) Jackson has them 2-1, which is the best record they've had in a while. We've got to be prepared."

Tailback Chris Ramirez (23 carries for 110 yards) led Milby in the loss to Davis.

Bellaire enters this week's confidence in a positive frame of mind after a near-perfect effort in a 48-0 shutout against Sharpstown.

Tailback Courtney James relied on strong blocking by the offensive line, rushing 14 times for 155 yards with a four-yard touchdown.

"Offensively, our line did a nice job with run blocking and pass protection," Law said. "They just keep getting better and better."

Kevin Allen also blocked a punt and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown.

"It was just a great all-around performance," Law said.

Episcopal

Football
— The Knights will host Dallas St. Mark's at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in a key South Zone game.

Episcopal (3-1) is riding high after last week's emotional 24-21 victory over Southwest Preparatory Conference rival St. John's. Coach Dick Phillips felt it wasn't the Knights' best performance to date but was pleased to get the win.

"It seemed like we ran hot and cold all night," Phillips said. "Offensively, we'd have a good series or two, then disappear for a while. We did that on defense, too."

"We played really well," said Episcopal coach Steve Lovejoy. "We lost quite a few games by two points. It was a heartbreaking, but it's going to make us better."

Episcopal will travel to Kinkaid at 4:30 p.m. Thursday in its next match.

Girls volleyball — The Knights (8-1) will travel to Kinkaid at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in a key South Zone match.

St. John's

Football
— The Mavericks will travel to Fort Worth for Friday's 7:30 p.m. game against Country Day.

Field hockey — The Mavericks will travel to Duchesne at 5:45 p.m. Thursday in a non-conference match.

St. John's opened the season last week with a 7-1 victory over San Antonio St. Mary's Hall. Hallie Crawford tallied two goals for the Mavericks, while Sarah Daniel, Kate Donnelly, Hannah Jeffers, Roxy Mody and Claire Smith scored once.

Girls volleyball — The Mavericks will host St. Pius at 6:30 p.m. Monday in non-conference action.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Episcopal

FOOTBALL

•
Athlete
: Marcus Knox
•
Achievement
: The senior tailback ran 13 times for 148 yards and three touchdowns against St. John's.
•
Athlete
: Dwayne Decuire
•
Achievement
: The sophomore nose guard/linebacker had two sacks and played the run well against St. John's.